July 21 | Matthew 6:19-21, 24

Pam Mann
Jul 21
3 min read

DAILY READING

REFLECTION

MASTER MAMMON

By Pam Mann

I try to imagine sitting on a hillside and hearing Jesus say these words. Like everyone else around me, I would have personal experience with the damage that moths and vermin can cause. If I hadn’t been robbed myself, I would know plenty of sad stories from friends and neighbors who had. I would long for a place where my treasures would be safe from predators. I wouldn’t know anything about professional pest control or home security systems. But then Jesus isn’t talking about protecting our stuff. He’s challenging us to think hard about what our greatest treasure is. What has our greatest affection? What consumes our attention? What shapes our priorities? That is our treasure. That is where our heart is. And here’s the scary part. How we answer those questions reveals who our master is.

I recall pondering Matthew 6:24, even as a young child. Both my mom and dad were hard workers, careful savers, and responsible parents, determined to give their four kids a good start in life. They did two things consistently: 1) They took us to church. 2) They taught us how to handle money.

I never asked my parents if we were at risk for a master mix-up. I regularly thought my parents were good at working both for God and for money. I was puzzled by Jesus’

pronouncement that you cannot serve two masters. I thought my family did exactly that. Plus, I didn’t think we were unusual in that attempt to serve both masters. In fact, everybody wanted the biggest house they could afford, the nicest car, the best of everything as much they could get, didn’t they? If we wanted these things, were we serving Mammon? The translation we read during my childhood said: You cannot serve both God and Mammon. Mammon is the name of a god, don’t you think? I thought so. Money, on the other hand, is what everyone needs to live. How could money be a god, an evil master?

Now, as an older adult, I still ponder this question. It is true that everyone needs money to live. The church needs money to operate. So, how do we keep reins on this necessity so that it doesn’t morph from being a resource we have into a master that has us?

Maybe regular financial and spiritual check-ups would help. When I pay the monthly bills, I can evaluate both where I’m spending and what I’m trusting. As a worker in God’s kingdom, do my spending habits reflect my commitment to God and His people? Am I investing my time and resources in heaven or on earth?

Recently, in an English class, the topic was legacy. I had explained that this can be a physical inheritance (like one’s home and financial assets). But your legacy can also involve passing on your passion for a cause that was important throughout your life. We had read about John Chapman, aka Johnny Appleseed, and his passion for teaching settlers in the Ohio River valley to grow apple trees. Johnny Appleseed left a legacy. (Though he was a believer, he didn’t write the prayer that we taught our kids to sing before meals. That came from a 1948 Disney film called Melody Time.) In our English group, I asked if anyone had an idea about what they wanted their legacy to be. Because I was pondering what to write for this devotional at the time, I wondered if pondering what the next generation would describe as my legacy would help me realize who my master really is. A middle-aged Chinese man, a teacher in a large eastern Chinese city, answered my question. He happens to be a Christian. He explained that western China is far more rural, and under-resourced, than the eastern area of the country. A retired teacher could move from an eastern city to a rural western village and volunteer to teach impoverished children who would otherwise never get the education that city kids in the east get. “I hope to do this in my retirement,” he said.

Here, I thought, is someone who’s figured out a life application for the Matthew 6 challenge to master Mammon.

PRAYER

Lord, You are Master of the universe. I want You also to be master of my heart. I want you to be my treasure. Make me wise and faithful as I make investment decisions on earth and for heaven.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

PAM MANN

I first joined UALC when my husband (then my fiancé) and I were college students involved in youth ministry. God has used UALC to nurture our family’s faith, even in our years outside the U.S. I’ve participated in UALC ministries with kids, art, prayer, exercise, ESL, and Bible teaching. I do all the fun church things.